Proactiveness: The Good, The Bad, and The Unnecessary? Empirical Evidence From Russian Smes

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Keywords: Proactiveness, contextualization, SME, qualitative analysis

Abstract: Proactiveness is one of the most important dimensions of entrepreneurship that can create value both at the individual and firm level. The phenomenon of proactiveness has been intensively studied in various fields, but little attention has been paid to its’ contextualization in emerging markets, which has led to an incomplete understanding of its features of origin and development at different levels. Being guided by this assumption, we aim to reveal the variety of phenomenon proactiveness manifestations in small and medium sized enterprises in Russian setting. Through the thematic analysis of qualitative data gained from top-managers and employees of 18 Russian firms, we highlight new dimensions of proactiveness phenomenon at three levels - executives, employees, and firms. The findings of the study are discussed from the lens of the national culture, historical, economical, and institutional contexts.